Russian flight controllers commanded the resupply ship to separate from the station in a test of an updated docking system that will be used for both Progress and Soyuz crewed spacecraft in the future. The new automated rendezvous system, known as Kurs-NA, will use a single antenna, which will allow four others to be removed. The Kurs-NA-enabled Progress and Soyuz spacecraft will have only three antennas, half as many as the current versions.

Kurs-NA will also use less power and improve safety through the use of updated electronics.

Progress M-15M arrived at the station in April. After it was emptied of its cargo, the space station crew filled it with trash for disposal.

The ship will re-dock to the station on Monday (July 23) at 8:57 p.m. CDT (0157 GMT July 24). Progress M-15M's final departure from the station is scheduled for July 30 with an undocking set for 1:11 p.m. CDT (1811 GMT). It will then enter the atmosphere to be destroyed.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 27328From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 07-24-2012 09:07 AM

Progress M-15M aborts re-docking attempt after new rendezvous system fails

The re-docking of Progress M-15M to the International Space Station has been postponed due to an apparent failure in the new Kurs-NA rendezvous system.

The next earliest attempt at a re-docking would be no earlier than Tuesday, pending analysis of the problem, but it is more likely to wait until after Japan's HTV-3 cargo ship is grappled and berthed to the earth-facing port on the Harmony module on Friday. In that case, the next docking attempt for Progress would occur Saturday or Sunday.

The test was proceeding normally on Monday (July 23) until about the time that the new Kurs-NA rendezvous system was to be engaged. As commands were being issued to activate the Kurs system, a failure was annunciated, triggering a passive abort.

A passive abort is a standard automatic procedure that is designed to take the spacecraft to a safe distance away from the station should an anomaly occur. From that position, the spacecraft can make another attempt to approach the space station after the failure is understood and Russian mission managers validate another attempt.

Progress M-15M flew approximately 1.8 miles (2.9 kilometers) below the station to a safe distance away from the orbiting outpost, where it will remain until another attempt is made to re-rendezvous with the space station.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 27328From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 07-28-2012 08:28 PM

Progress M-15M successfully re-docks to station

Russia's Progress M-15M spacecraft successfully docked again to the International Space Station's (ISS) Pirs docking compartment on Saturday (July 28) at 8:01 p.m. CDT (0101 GMT July 29) after a test of its new automated rendezvous system.

Under the watchful eye of Russian flight controllers, the resupply ship undocked on Sunday, July 22 to test an updated automated docking system, known as Kurs-NA, which is expected to be used for both Progress and piloted Soyuz spacecraft in the future.

Kurs-NA uses a single antenna, which will allow four others to be removed. The Kurs-NA-equipped Progress and Soyuz spacecraft will have only three antennas, half as many as the current versions.

Kurs-NA will also use less power and improve safety.

Progress M-15M arrived at the station in April. After it was emptied of its cargo, the space station crew filled it with trash for disposal. The spacecraft is set to make its final departure from the orbiting complex on Monday (July 30) at 1:11 p.m. CDT (1811 GMT).

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 27328From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 07-30-2012 09:05 PM

Progress M-15M departs station for final time

Progress M-15M, loaded with trash, undocked from the International Space Station's Pirs docking compartment for the final time Monday at 4:19 p.m. CDT (2119 GMT).

At a safe distance away from the space station, it will undergo several weeks of unrelated engineering tests before it is de-orbited for a fiery demise in the Earth's atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean.

The cargo ship undocked July 22, then re-docked Saturday in a test of the new Kurs-NA automated rendezvous system.